News

July 2010

The Trees are Falling Everywhere

The recent weather has done a number on the trees this year. ​

150 year old Oak tree in Visalia splits June 2010

We’ve all been happy with the weather since this last winter and spring, and now into summer with the rain and remaining snow in the mountains, and the mildness of the summer heat. But for every blessing with the weather, we’ve received a curse.

There is a section of Visalia where the Oak trees grow tall and age in beauty abundant. When driving through this part of town you can’t help but notice these mammoth monarchs towering over homes, providing shade and gentle breezes to all who live there or pass through.

Sadly, these trees are collapsing under their own weight at an alarming rate. Some have lost branches, others have split completely in half. Thankfully, no one at these homes has been hurt, but there has been some property damage. However, the same cannot be said for everyone.

In New York City, one family didn’t fare as well when a branch fell from a tree in the Central Park Zoo injuring a mother, and killing her baby girl. Four days later, the trees were trimmed and cleaned up.

Oak tree in Visalia splits June 2010, lands on tool shed

The Oaks and their owners aren’t the only ones losing their beloved trees. The picture below is of a Silver Dollar Eucalyptus that lost a large branch the last of June. Water built up in the forks and over time rotted; that, coupled with the weight of the branch, caused it to break.

Even the Eucalyptus aren’t immune to the epidemic

Tips for a Healthy Tree and a Happy Home

We are encouraging everyone to check on their trees, both for your safety as well as for the health of your trees. Here are a few things you can do for your trees:

1. Research your tree - Find out what kind of tree you have, how often it needs to be watered, and how often it should be trimmed.

2. Before you Plant – Find out what kinds of trees work best in your area. Not all trees are good in all locations. Some trees need more sun than others, some need cooler temperatures, more water, others have sprawling roots that will, over time, lift sidewalks and ruin the foundations of homes.

Take the European White Birch for example; you may have seen these trees around town. They are beautiful white trees with “weeping” branches but they aren’t doing so well in town. These need a lot of water and are short lived. Though they are very pretty, they are not for everyone because they are high maintenance.

3. If your branches/leaves are touching your roof – Please call a professional to have them trimmed. Damage can occur when water and debris accumulate where the leaves are resting resulting

in rotting and leaking roofs.

4. If your trees are creaking, cracking, or leaning – Please call a professional to Trim and Balance your tree right away. Trees can mend themselves if you catch them in time. By removing excess weight you can add many years to the life of your tree.

Trees Wreak Havoc in Tulare

It’s not just Visalia…

Oak breaks in Tulare, July 06, 2010

In a quiet Tulare neighborhood, an Oak tree stood tall and proud, offering shade to passerby’s and parked cars, and homes to many bees. What looked like a perfect resting spot on a hot day was really an accident waiting to happen.

What you couldn’t see was that this massive Oak was hiding and even larger secret; it was dying from the inside out.

The picture above shows a large hole in the fallen section of the tree. This hollowed spot left the branch weakened and a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off.

The weight of the limbs and leaves on the end of this large branch made it harder for the tree to hold on to as the hole grew larger, and eventually it couldn’t hold it anymore. What resulted was sad to say the least.​

When the branch finally gave way July 06, 2010, it fell on a resident’s truck and a kid’s basketball hoop. The truck had just been parked two hours earlier.

Thankfully, no one was injured and the City of Tulare is having the Oak tree removed before the rest of the tree gives way.

There are at least two beehives in the tree indicating at least two more hollow spots in it.

Townsfolk Fight City of Tulare

Oak tree removal denied by City of Tulare is on appeal, residents gear up for a fight.

Isn’t she Grand?

When contractors built around this tree, they dug out the streets and packed up the foundations for flood protection purposes. Good idea, right?

This practice is common, and yes, it does do a lot of good. It can also be devastating. When the crews were packing in the dirt to raise the levels of the homes above the streets, they also packed dirt on top of the roots of the trees. What resulted was suffocation. This tree looks healthy, but it isn’t.

Residents of the community petitioned to have the City of Tulare remove this tree and were ultimately denied. The ruling was appealed and heard July 06, 2010. Did they have a case?

Under this tree, is a children’s play-set with swings, a slide, and a fort. This set had to be mended because the tree this community was trying to get removed lost a branch that fell directly on this play-set, the branch can still be seen laying behind it by the fence.

The City of Tulare has now agreed to remove the tree.

June 2009

**All articles written and distributed by Keri Knudson on behalf of Jack Benigno's Tree Service. No article is intended to scare, harass, criticize, ridicule, offend, cause malice to, or spite anyone.**This newsletter is primarily for informational purposes and only secondarily for advertising/marketing purposes.